This invention relates to electronically controlled sewing machines and, more particularly, to an arrangement for providing a pictorial display of a selected stitch pattern to be sewn by the sewing machine.
Sewing machines employing sophisticated electronic technology for the storage and subsequent retrieval of stitch pattern information for a multiplicity of patterns have enjoyed great commercial success in recent years. One great advantage of the use of an electronically controlled sewing machine is in its simplicity of operation and control, as perceived by the user. With such a sewing machine, a user can select any one of a multiplicity of patterns by merely pushing a button. In order to alter the size and/or shape of the selected pattern, other easily operated control elements are provided on the sewing machine. For example, a control element is typically provided for varying the stitch length; a control element is typically provided for varying the stitch width; a control element may be provided for controlling the sewing of the mirror image of the stored pattern; a control element may be provided for controlling the sewing of a pattern having twice the length of the stored pattern; a control element may be provided for selecting a twin needle function for the sewing machine; etc. Unfortunately, until a pattern is actually sewn, a user may have no idea how the manipulation of the aforementioned control elements will affect the look of the pattern. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an arrangement for displaying a pictorial representation of a selected pattern as it would be sewn by the sewing machine after pattern selection and alteration by a user.